Podracer To Use Hikaru - Cali @2:01 pm
EDTTFN has some other news about the
Dreamcast version of Pod Race, and some of the ramifications it will have on gamers:

The Pod Racer Arcade game will not
be on the Naomi Arcade boards (which are easily compatible w/ the Dreamcast). The game
will be on the new Hikaru Arcade board. This new board does light sourcing and special
effects better than Naomi. I do not know if this new board is %100 compatible with the DC.
So in short, the Pod Racer Arcade game may make it to the Dreamcast, but it may not be
arcade perfect.

Dreamcaster.net has posted some
details concerning Episode 1: Racer. Here are the details:

A few weeks ago, Lucasarts'
commitment to both the arcades and to Dreamcast was revealed with the announcement of
Episode I: Racer. Naturally, everyone expected the game to be running off of Naomi
hardware, but this is not exactly the case. Apparently, Episode I: Racer is running off of
some modified form of Naomi that gives it a little more power. A Dreamcast port is still
likely, but the fact that this game is not running off of the base Naomi hardware may make
the game a little more difficult to convert.

LucasGames has released a demo review of Lucas
Learning's Pit Droid, a Star Wars Episode 1: Phantom Menace puzzle game. Here is a clip
from the storyline:

Looming over Tatooine in a transport ship is
the largest shipment of these pit droids that Watto, the Toydarian junk dealer, has ever
purchased. Watto was hoping to sell the droids for various uses on Tatooine.
Unfortunately, it turns out that these pit droids are only good at one thing, fixing
Podracers. Waiting idly in their ship, the pit droids have already caused more damage than
even Watto's star mechanic, Anakin Skywalker, could possibly repair. Desperate, Watto begs
the player's assistance in moving these mindless mechanicals from their transport ship to
the Podrace Arena where their energies can be put to good use.

has an article that suggests again the
new Pod Racer Arcade game will come to the new Dreamcast. Apparently, the Naomi is the
arcade version of the Dreamcast. It's the same system with a little more RAM.

Your page states that Naomi is the Arcade
version of the Dreamcast. This is true to an extent. Naomi arcade boards can be combined.
(there is a Ferrari game in Japan that uses 3 boards). Dreamcast is able to do a single
Naomi board. Pod Racer Arcade may in fact make an appearence on the Dreamcast, but only if
its a single Naomi board game, or if they make a single board version (which is what they
did for that Ferrari game). We've still got HIGH hopes for this game. Did you download the
movie yet?

TFN has news about GameFan releasing some exclusive preview screenshots of Sega's
upcoming Star Wars: Episode One Racer arcade game. They ask, "Could this be the
secretive Star Wars Dreamcast game rumored to be headed for the US?" See their site
for the rest of the pictures.

Echostation
released a review on the
Podracer game for both PC and N64. Here is a clip from the introduction:

Once again, Lucas Arts has released spin-off games for Star
Wars®. This time, the games are related to the newest movie Episode 1: The Phantom
Menace. I was one of the many who pre-ordered the Episode One: Racer game, but
one of the few that actually waited until after the movie to play it. (Granted this was
because I broke my joystick a day earlier on a multiplayer game of Mysteries of the
Sith, and needed to replace it, but I still waited.) So I saw the movie. It was
good. It obviously wasnt the movie to end all movies, but it was worthy of the name
Star Wars®. Thats enough of that, this is a game review, and not a movie review.
So Episode One: Racer.

Ray 'Moongod' Gresko of Nihilistic
Software has updated his .plan file
with news about a new member! Here are the details from his .plan file:

I'm very pleased to welcome aboard
the 12th member of Nihilistic Software - Jacob Stephens! Jacob started his career in games
at LucasArts in 1996, after graduating from Penn State University with a Bachelor of
Architecture degree. As part of the Jedi Knight level design team, he designed and
completed work on eight levels in the game, including the well-received Level 16: The
Falling Ship. Since Jedi, Jacob has sharpened his design skills creating levels for Jedi
Knight: Mysteries of the Sith, and Star Wars: Episode I Racer. He's
recently been modeling 3D sets for a yet-to-be-announced project at LucasArts. [Read More]

Monday - August 30,
1999

Pod Racer Debug - Cali @7:51 pm EDTTheforce.net has
reported news about a code for those that still haven't been able to conquer the debug
mode of N64 TPM Pod Racer. Here's the goods:

For the Nintendo 64 if you use the
normal code inserting procedure (selecting an empty file and holding Z the entire time and
pressing L to select a letter and after you enter the code , while still holding Z, select
"end" and select it with L. Then you press B and may use that code under any
file. The code is RRTANGENTABACUS. It opens all cheats in the cheat menu that can be
accessed by pressing pause during a race and, using the control pad, entering "left,
down, right, up". You can now change almost all aspects of the games original
programing (When you turn it off or change races it will reset itself) from the speed of
yourself or other players that you are racing against (from a measly 100 to 3000 mph), or
the rate of cooling, etc. You have to try this out.

We're expanding! That's right, JediKnight.Net and the LucasGames Network will be expanding to encompass
upcoming titles being released by LucasArts. In addition, we want to greatly increase the
amount of news and coverage on existing sites within the network. I will of course be
posting news as usual, but more team members should equal more news and more coverage for
our readers.

For those of you that are unfamiliar
with the LucasGames Network, it currently includes the following sites:

We're also a proud member of the
rapidly expanding IGN Network, one of the most
trafficked online gaming networks in the world. We're looking for several initial
volunteers to help cover news on a daily basis. You should be able to update at least 2
times a day, if Star Wars gaming news should happen to break. These positions will be
volunteer status, but may eventually lead to a compensated position. (Don't have illusions
about getting rich though, we all have full-time jobs or are in school and this is done
for the fun of it in the end.) However, if you're looking to become a member of a team in
an exciting expanding network, this might be your chance. Although we use a news script,
you should have some basic knowledge of HTML and you should be familiar with the online
Star Wars Gaming community. A good candidate might be a college student who has time to
check for news and update in between classes... or someone who has access to the net
during the day. In the end, if you're looking to have some fun updating about Star Wars
Gaming news and related material, and you're interested in joining a proven team, Email
Us the following information.

Name

Web experience: (URL for sites created
or worked on, etc.)

Let us know why you want to join the
team and what you think you can bring to the LucasGames Network.

Include your age, and whatever
additional information you feel appropriate.

-Thanks in advance to all who
respond! We'll only be picking 2 or 3 people at a maximum, but we'll respond to each
inquiry.

Digital Review has posted their point of view of Lucasarts'
Podracer game. The review includes 5 screenshots and they gave the game an overall score
of 3 out of 5 hearts. Here is a clip:

All in all, Star Wars Episode I:
Pod Racer is a strong game, certainly above average. The main fault is it's lack of
longevity which is why the gameplay scores are down. I would definitely recommend this to
a fan of the films or anyone else who likes their high speed racing thrills. If your happy
paying for your short sharp shocks then this is for you.

"Not too long ago in a galaxy
not too far away, George Lucas needed money. Lo, Star Wars: The Phantom Menace was born,
and a new slew of product tie-ins was sure to follow. Lunch boxes, toys, T-shirts, body
washes (yes body washes), and of course, games. LucasArts has a long history of
hit-and-miss releases utilizing (pillaging?) the Star Wars franchise (anyone remember
Rebel Assault?). But they never really have to worry about their games selling well. Slap
"Star Wars" on the box and it's off the shelf faster than you can say sequel...
or prequel. As long as the public gets to play their favorite characters and gadgets they
will buy the game. The point is, LucasArts does not NEED to make a quality game. However,
they sometimes do. The unimaginatively titled "Racer" is one of those."

PitDroids Movie- Cali @7:12am EDTJediNet Software has news about Gamespot having the debut of the PitDroids
movie for Quicktime. It's available in two different sizes, with the larger file
offering a slightly larger picture size. The three-minute movie showcases Watto,
gameplay footage, and explanations of the game itself. There is a download for both large
and small files.

Episode 1 Racer Leagues-
Cali @7:51pm EDTEpisode 1 Racer
Leagues contains the top times for all the circuits that people submit and can try to
beat. Email Steve your best times. It is currently
partly constructed and the number of tracks available is limit but all track should be
there within the month.

Star Wars Episode I: Racer is an
excelently crafted game that draws on the excitement of Anakin Skywalker's perilous race
though the canyons of Tatooine. The first time I saw Episode I, I immediately desired to
race through canyons at several hundred kilometers per hour. However, that may prove
rather difficult as I have neither the money nor the deathwish to try it out. Luckily for
the rest of the world, Lucasarts has come out with a superb recreation of the experience.
Episode I Racer, available for both Nintendo 64 and Windows 95 PC, is almost instantly
addicting.

Tuesday - July 27,
1999

GameArena Review- Cali @7:55pm EDTGameArena.Net has posted online a review of Lucas Arts' most reviewed
title to-date, Episode 1: Racer. They give the game an overall score of 91%. Here is an
excerpt:

The first thing you notice is the
race build up, the atmosphere is one of a big event, there are roars from the crowd as the
camera pans round, there is a three, two one countdown and youre off. The next thing
that will amaze you is the sheer speed of the game, because you are travelling so fast,
sheer instinct takes over, you have just seconds to decide which way to turn.

Thrawn of Jedinet has sent word about Gamespot having
a news article concerning Episode I: Racer coming to the Playstation. He also mentioned
that PSX.IGN reported some interesting
news about Episode I: Racer 'NOT' coming to PSX. It sounds like there is a lot of
confusion, hopefully Lucasarts will confirm the truth but for now, I guess most of the
Nintendo 64 and PC players have all of the Star Wars Podracer excitement.

Theforce.net
has news about a Mac Pod Interview. Here are the details:

Matthew tells us of the
status of the upcoming Mac conversion of the Pod Racer game, and provides a link for more
information:

Here's an update on the release of the
Macintosh version of Star Wars Episode I: Racer. Brad Post has worked on many of the
LucasArts games which were converted to the Mac platform, and some have even had the
priviledge to get advice from him through newsgroups and e-mail. It's a good read, about a
guy we trust will make the Mac version state of the art.

Here's the link
to the interview posted on the MacGamer's Ledge with Brad Post, the LucasArts Senior
Programmer on the Macintosh Episode I Racer conversion project.

Here's an excerpt from the interview, be
sure to visdit their site for the entire transcript:

MGL: Are there any things specific to the
Mac version of Racer or is it basically identical to the PC ver! sion?

BP: We don't have anything specific yet to
declare for the Macintosh. Personally I hope it's better, faster, stronger than the PC
version, but we won't know until we get closer to finishing.

Gamesdomain
has a second
opinion of the Star Wars: Episode One: Racer. They also have a review
of the Star Wars: Episode One: Insider's Guide. Here is a clip from the 2n opinion on the
racer game:

The game is full of cut-scenes.
Right from the start, LucasArts have designed an excellent little scene for displaying
their logo involving the pit droids. After the expected Star Wars writing going up the
screen there is an introduction which is breath taking to say the least. It really is
fantastic and is good enough to have come straight from the film.